Rescue apparatus



Oct. 10, 1939. J. s. DUNN '2,175,748 n RESCUE APPARATUS Filed Oct. 25,1937 2 Sheets-Sheet l F l Ei. wucmccm rI. DUNN @Hoa/MAM@ n* om, 1o,1939. J. s. DUNN 2,175,748

` RESCUE APPARATUS Filed Oct. 25, 1937 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 *di s. D UNNPatented Oct. 1Q, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 4 Claims.

This invention appertains to rescue apparatus or life saving appliances,and more especially, to a means by which persons may be safely andexpeditiously lowered from a burning building 5 or ship, or in fact,transported from any zone of danger to a zone of comparative safety.

Generally speaking, the invention embraces a novel carrier or conveyancehaving provision for elevating and/ or lowering the same, and to which aperson may be secured to facilitate a rescue of such person.

A further object of the invention is to provide a carrier having theform of a compact and light Weight platform to which the person to berescued may be quickly and safely secured so as to permit raising orlowering of such person in a substantially vertical position, and alsopermitting transportation of such person in a substantially horizontalposition or otherwise. In other words, the carrier serves not only as ameans for elevating or lowering the person to be rescued, but also as astretcher which can be used in the conventional manner withoutnecessitating transfer of the person from the carrier to anothercarrying means.

A still further object of the inventionis to provide a carrier which isso constructed as to minimize injury to the person being rescued orvotherwise transported thereby, and to this end, suitable means isprovided to securely fasten the person to the carrier in a manner whichwill not only prevent the person from becoming detached therefrom duringhandlingrofY the carrier, but also which will not aggravate or causeadditional injury in case such person should be suffering from aninjured or broken limb.

Still another object of the invention is to construct the carrier insuch manner as to facilitate lowering of the same down the side of abuilding or ship, or down a ladder, and prevent the carrier fromcatching or hanging on projections such as cornices, window sills andthe like, or in the case oi'4 a ladder, on the rounds of the ladder.

Other and further objects and advantages of the invention will behereinafter described and the novel features thereof defined by theappended claims.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a top plan View of a carrier constructed according to theinvention;

Figure 2 is a longitudinal sectional View, taken approximately on theline 2 2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a transverse sectional view, taken approximately on the line3 3 of Figure l;

Figure 4 is a view in side elevation illustrating one manner of use ofthe carrier, such as where the carrier is placed on a ladder and lowereddown over the rounds thereof; and

Figure 5 is a view more or less in perspective, illustrating a stillfurther manner of use of the 5 carrier, wherein the same is beinglowered in a substantially vertical position directly down the side of abuilding.

Like reference characters designate corresponding parts in the severalfigures of the draw- 10 ings.

Referring to Figures 1 to 3, inclusive, I generally designates thecarrier body which may be constructed of any suitable material,preferably of light weight, such as wood, composition, metal, or thelike. As shown in the drawings, the body l is composed of contiguouslongitudinal wood strips secured together by means of transverse ribs 2,much in the same manner as a conventional toboggan, thus forming asubstantially rigid unit. One end of the body I is curved to one side ofthe plane of the body, as at 3, for a purpose which will hereinafterbecome more apparent. Mounted at suitable intervals along the body I,there is a plurality of transversely eX- tending strapsA, preferably ofmetal construction, which are kbent outwardly away from the body I attheir opposite extremities, as at 5, and are formed to receivelongitudinal side rails 6, there being one side rail at each side of thebody.

At the end of the body` I opposite to the curved end 3there is provideda hanger 1 of substantially U-shaped form. The two arms 8 of the hangerare recessed in the upper sides of the two ribs 2 nearest this end ofthebody I, so as to lie intermediate these ribs and the transverse strapsor irons 4, which extend across the upper faces of these ribs. Suitablefastening means, such as rivets or bolts k9, serve to secure the hangerl to the irons 4 and ribs 2. At the outer extremity of the hanger l,there is provided an aperture or ring lil for receiving a rope II, cableor other suitable equivalent means for suspending and manipulating thecarrier in a substantially vertical position, as shown in Figures 4 and5. At the curved end 3 of the carrier body i there is preferablyprovided one or more, preferably two, eyes or rings I2, to which guyropes I3 may be secured, as shown in Figure 5. I4 55 designates a covermember which may be composed of a sheet of composition, pressed board orthe like, applied over the ribs 2 and transverse irons 4 to provide asmooth surface or bed against which a person to be rescued or carried bythe carrier may be laid and supported in reasonable comfort.

Suitable means is preferably provided to enable a person to be securelyfastened to the carrier, and for this purpose there is provided atwo-piece band or strap I5, one piece of which is fastened to one of theside rails 6, and the other piece of which is fastened to the other siderail. The inner extremities of the two-piece band may be adjustablyfastened together by means of the buckle straps I6, as will be obviousfrom reference to Figure 1. The band I is preferably positioned at suchpoint intermediate the ends of the carrier body I that it will passacross the chest of the person lying on the carrier, and just below thearm pits. Another band I1, generally similar to band I5, is preferablyprovided and positioned so as to pass across the persons body at aboutthe knees. This band I'I may be adjusted by means of the buckle strapsI8. Intermediate the bands I5 and II, there is preferably provided apair of crotch straps I9 and 20. The outer ends of these straps I9 and20 are respectively fastened to the side rails 6, and the inner ends areprovided with loops so as to enable the persons legs to be passedthrough the loops so as to be embraced thereby, as best shown in Figure4. The advantage of the crotch straps I9 and 20 lies in supporting theWeight of the person largely on the straps when the person is secured tothe carrier and the carrier is suspended in a substantially verticalposition, as shown in Figures 4 and 5. When the crotch straps are snuglyadjusted to fit up into the crotch, the person cannot slidelongitudinally on the carrier towards the curved end 3, which willhereinafter be referred to as the foot end. This is especially importantin cases Where the person being rescued is unconscious and wouldtherefore be unable to brace his feet against the curved end 3, and moreespecially, if the person should have a broken or otherwise' injuredleg, it would be very undesirable to place any Weight on the injuredmember through engagement of his foot with the curved end. For thesereasons and others, the person is preferably strapped to the carrierwith his feet disposed in spaced relation to the curved end 3, and thecrotch straps I9, 2U effectively serve to maintain this spacedrelationship irrespective of the position of the carrier.

As a further aid in securing the person to the carrier, especially incases where the person may be so severely injured or frightened as to beviolent, the straps 2l, one connected to each side rail 5, may beavailed of to strap the persons arms closely to his sides or against theside rails. Instead of connecting the variousrstraps to the side rails6, they may be suitably connected directly to the carrier body I, nearthe margins thereof.

Referring to Figure 4, the carrier I is illustrated in one of itstypical uses of which it is capable. As shown, it is assumed that theperson being rescued has been cut off from escape from a burningbuilding, such as has been generally designated by the referencecharacter 22, and has been injured so that he is unable to descend fromthe building by means of a ladder or other- Wise. Under thesecircumstances, a rescue can be quickly effected by raising the ladder 23to a Window near the point where the injured person is trapped, or tothe roof, and taking the carrier I up the ladder to facilitate loweringthe person to the'ground or to a lower level of safety. To accomplishthis, the person is strapped to the carrier I by means of the bands andstraps previously described, and the carrier, with the person strappedthereon, may be lowered down the ladder under the control of thesuspension rope or cable II. The carrier will readily slide down overthe rounds 24 of the ladder, and the curved foot end 3 of the carrierwill serve to prevent the lower end of the carrier from catching orhanging on the rounds. The carrier preferably has a width slightly lessthan the width of the ladder so that the side rails 25 of the ladderwill constitute guideways for the carrier and prevent the carrier fromsliding off the ladder as it is lowered.

In Figure 5, the lowering operation of the carrier with the rescuedperson strapped thereto is performed in much the same manner asdescribed in connection with Figure 4, excepting that instead oflowering the carrier down the ladder 23, the carrier is lowered directlydown the face of the building 22. In this case, guy ropes I3, fastenedto the foot-end of the carrier I, are preferably utilized to prevent thecarrier from swinging or otherwise tilting to an undesired position. Thecurved foot-end 3 effectively serves to prevent the carrier fromcatching on window sills, cornices, or other projections on the face ofthe building when the type of use shown in Figure 5 is resorted to, andalso guards the feet of the person being rescued.

Of course, instead of lowering the carrier to effect a rescue of theperson secured thereto, the carrier may be elevated or raised to ahigher level if such is preferred. This condition would be encounteredin transferring injured persons from one ship to another at sea, inwhich case, the carrier would be lowered from the deck of one ship intoasmall boat to convey the person to the other ship, and when the latteris reached, the carrier would be elevated up the side of the lattership, all without necessitating removal of the person from the carrier,and with a maximum degree of safety.

Heretofore, in rescuing injured persons or persons overcome by smoke sothat they are unconscious or semi-conscious, the general practice hasbeen to bodily carry the person down a ladder, or place the person on anordinary stretcher, and, through the aid of men working from two laddersplaced near enough together as to permit the men to support the oppositeends of the stretcher, lower the stretcher down in a substantiallyhorizontal position. These practices are very difficult ofaccomplishment, and are exceedingly hazardous to the rescuers, as Wellas to the person or persons being rescued. My invention herein shown anddescribed largely eliminates these hazards, due to the fact that it canbe handled with greater ease in effecting a rescue, and with greaterfacility and comfort to the person being rescued.

After lowering or raising the carrier, as the case may be, to a point ofsafety, the carrier may be employed as a stretcher to transport therescued person to a different site. In such use, the side rails 5 may beavailed of as lifting and supporting handles. These handles 6 reinforcethe carrier I, and together with the reinforcement afforded by thetransverse ribs 2 and irons II, maintain the carrier body rigid andresistant to bending or buckling even though the body may be ofcomparatively light weight construction.

Through reason of the simplicity and compactness of the carrier, theoost of construction CII thereof is quite nominal. It would therefore beperfectly practical to equip each company of a re department with one ormore of these carriers so that the same may be available for usewhenever the occasion arises. Obviously, the invention is not limited touse in fire departments, but is also adaptable to other emergency usessuch as in mines, subways and the like, which will readily be apparentfrom the foregoing.

While the specic details have been herein shown and described, theinvention is not confined thereto as changes and alterations may be madewithout departing from the spirit thereof as dened by the appendedclaims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is:

1. A rescue carrier of the class described, comprising an elongatedsubstantially rigid body, ribs extending transversely across said bodyat spaced intervals and secured thereto, means ad ditional to said ribsand also extending transversely across said body at spaced intervals andhaving provision at the opposite ends thereof for supporting `a siderail at each side of said body, a side rail secured to said last namedmeans and extending along each side of said body, means for securing aperson in a prone position on said body intermediate the side railsaforesaid, means at one end of said body for attaching a rope or thelike thereto to permit raising and lowering of said body in a generallyvertical direction, and means for securing a guy rope or the likeadjacent to the corners of the. body at the end opposite to the ropeattaching means aforesaid.

2. A rescue carrier of the class described, comprising an elongatedsubstantially rigid body, ribs extending transversely across said bodyat spaced intervals and secured thereto, means additional to said ribsand also extending transversely across said body at spaced intervals andhaving provision at the opposite ends thereof for supporting a side railat each side of said body, a side rail secured to said last named meansand extending along each side of said body, means for securing a personin a prone position on said body intermediate the side rails aforesaid,said last named means including a plurality of adjustable bandsextending transversely across the carrier body in spaced relation toeach other and a pair of crotch straps respectively secured to oppositesides of said body and forming loops for the reception of the legs ofthe person to b-e placed on the carrier so as to be received in thecrotch of said person, and means at one end of said body for attaching arope or the like thereto to permit raising and lowering of said body ina generally vertical direction.

3. A rescue carrier of the class described, comprising an elongatedsubstantially rigid body, ribs extending transversely across said bodyat spaced intervals and secured thereto, means additional to said ribsand also extending trans- -versely across said body at spaced intervalsand having provision at the opposite ends thereof for supporting a siderail at each side of said body, a side rail secured to said last namedmeans and extending along each side of said body, means for securing aperson in a prone position on said body intermediate the side railsaforesaid, and means at one end of said body for attaching a rope or thelike thereto to permit raising and lowering of said body in a generallyvertical direction, said last named means comprising a substantiallyU-shaped hanger, the arms of which substantially overlie one end of thebody and are xedly secured thereto.

4. A rescue carrier of the class described, comprising an elongatedsubstantially rigid body, ribs extending transversely across said bodyat spaced intervals and secured thereto, means additional to said ribsand also extending transversely across said body at spaced intervals andhaving provision at the opposite ends thereof for supporting a side railat each side of said body, a side rail secured to said last named meansand extending along each side of said body, means for securing a personin a prone position on said body intermediate the side rails aforesaid,means at one end of said body for attaching a rope or the like theretoto permit raising and lowering of said body in a generally verticaldirection, and a substantially rigid cover member superposed on saidribs andtransverse side rail supporting means, whereby to provide a.fiat supporting surface.

JOI-IN S. DUNN.

